It marks a big turnaround in fortunes for the continent's seven-time champion, which failed to qualify for the last two Africa Cup of Nations and suspended its domestic league for a year after more than 70 fans died in the Port Said tragedy in February 2012.

Guinea's hopes of a World Cup debut were ended despite winning 2-0 against Zimbabwe, with striker Mohamed Yattara scoring both goals.

The Ivory Coast also went through to the playoffs, winning 4-2 away to Tanzania to be sure of topping Group C.

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Death sentences in Egypt violence

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Death sentences in Egypt violence02:31

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy 18 photos

Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Behind the mask – On January 26 a courtroom in Cairo passed down 21 death sentences to fans of Al Masry soccer club for their role in the deaths of 72 supporters of Al Ahly, Egypt's biggest club from Cairo, during a match last February.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Scales of justice – Some 15,000 fans of Al Ahly, many members of the club's Ahlawy ultras group, gathered in front of a billboard displaying pictures of the dead at the team's training ground to hear the verdict.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Moment of truth – The news of the death sentences sparked wild celebrations among the supporters.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Fans celebrate – Smoke filled the air as flares and fireworks were set off.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Armed and ready – Many of the fans had come armed with homemade pistols, expecting the judgment to go against them.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Rally at the club – The jubilant fans were let into the club, where they held a rally on the training pitch.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Portrait of the dead – Many of the victims' families were also there, holding pictures of loved ones. Here one young fan holds a portrait of his best friend, who died in Port Said.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

ACAB – The Ahlawy played a crucial role in Egypt's two-year-old revolution. Graffiti honoring them and the dead can be seen throughout Egypt. This piece of graffiti next to Tahrir Square shows a line of police, each with the former dictator Hosni Mubarak's face. The acronym ACAB stands for "All Cops Are Bastards."

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Down with Morsi – Meanwhile, in Port Said, the announcement sparked violence that led to the deaths of more than 30 people and the imposition of a curfew by President Morsy. A protest was organized to break the curfew. Here a protester carries a picture of Morsy blowing bubbles.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Army in control – The army was called onto the streets. Many in Port Said blamed the police for the deaths and greeted the army as heroes, kissing soldiers as they passed.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Port Said women protest – A cross section of Port Said society attended, including several hundred women. The 9 p.m. curfew came and went. The protesters stayed on the streets.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Al Masry ultras – At the center of the protest was Al Masry's biggest ultras group, the Green Eagles. Many deny involvement in last February's Port Said tragedy.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

The sound of machine guns – The protest was ended when police fired automatic weapons. One protester was killed.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Aftermath – The following day, after the protest, burnt out cars remained in the street.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Protest – A defaced election campaign poster for President Morsy found nearby.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Shots fired – Outside a mosque next to Port Said's soccer stadium, a crowd gathered for the funeral of a protester killed the previous night. Dozens of men crowded around to show their injuries sustained during the protest, as well as spent bullet casings.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Empty stands – The stadium was only a few hundred meters away. It was here that more than 70 Al Ahly fans were killed. The stadium is closed with little prospect of any soccer returning here for a long while, even though the pitch had been freshly mowed. Al Masry has been temporarily banned from soccer when the league eventually restarts.

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Fallout from Port Said tragedy18 photos

Harrowing reminder – Inside, the stands have been left virtually untouched since the tragedy last February.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest 45 photos

Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian protester throws a tear gas canister toward riot police during clashes outside the Egyptian presidential palace on Friday, February 1, in Cairo. Egypt has been embroiled in violence since last week, the two-year anniversary of an uprising that led to the ouster of then-President Hosni Mubarak.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester holds a smoke flare outside the presidential palace on February 1.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – The entrance of Egypt's presidential palace in Cairo is in flames February 1, as protesters battle security forces.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester faces off against riot police during clashes near Cairo's Tahrir Square on Wednesday, January 30.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A police officer fires a tear gas canister during clashes with protesters near Tahrir Square on January 30.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Police in plainclothes detain a youth suspected of being a member of the Black Bloc opposition group during a demonstration on January 30 in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester sprays water into the eyes of a man after his exposure to tear gas during clashes with police near Cairo's Tahrir Square on Tuesday, January 29.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – The lobby of Cairo's Semiramis InterContinental Hotel is full of debris on January 29 after protesters stormed the entrance.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian man takes part in a rally in Port Said on January 29. Protests in Port Said and nearby cities along the Suez Canal are symbolic because that region was among the first where the Mubarak regime lost control during the 2011 unrest, analysts say.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Mourners carry the coffins of six people killed in clashes after the soccer riot ruling in Port Said on Monday, January 28. Rage exploded when a judge sentenced to death 21 residents of Port Said for roles in a deadly 2012 soccer riot.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptians walk past destroyed cars in Port Said on January 28 following the funeral of those killed in clashes.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A riot police officer clashes with a protester near Cairo's Tahrir Square on January 28.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester throws a tear gas canister toward riot police in Cairo's Tahrir Square on Sunday, January 27.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptian policemen and relatives on January 27 gather upon the arrival of the coffins of their colleagues killed in the violence one day earlier in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester throws a rock toward opposing demonstrators on January 27 in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptian protesters throw stones toward riot police on January 27 in Tahrir Square.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian protester runs with a live tear gas canister toward Egyptian riot police on Saturday, January 26, in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptian fans of Al-Ahly football club celebrate outside the club's headquarters in Cairo on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptian fans of Al-Ahly football club celebrate outside the club's headquarters in Cairo on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptian protesters stand by the burning door of a school building on January 26, in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian protester carries an injured boy away from clashes with Egyptian riot police on January 26, in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptians climb over a fence at the Al-Ahly home stadium on January 26 in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian fan of Al-Ahly football club fires celebratory shots in the air and lights a flare as club supporters celebrate outside its headquarters in Cairo on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester throws a rock at riot police on January 26, in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A fan of Al-Ahly football club lights a flare as club supporters celebrate on January 26 in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Al-Ahly football club supporters celebrate outside the club's headquarters in Cairo on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Al-Ahly football club supporters celebrate on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Smoke billows from a burning vehicle set on fire by Egyptian protesters outside the Port Said prison on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptians react after the sentencing in Port Said on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Al-Ahly soccer fan swings a live flare above his head on January 26 in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian protester tries to carry an injured man away from clashes with riot police on January 26, in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptian fans of Al-Ahly football club rally outside the club's headquarters in Cairo on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian protester runs away from a cloud of tear gas fired by Egyptian riot police on January 26, in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Relatives of victims killed during the 2012 Port Said soccer game react after the verdict of the court, at a courthouse in Cairo, on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Relatives and friends of Egyptian protesters who were killed in Suez during clashes with riot police Friday, load a body onto an ambulance outside the morgue in Suez on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A fan of Al-Ahly football club lights a flare as club supporters celebrate outside its headquarters in Cairo on January 26.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Two protesters stand on top of a piece of furniture while riot police watch from a nearby rooftop in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester throws a rock at riot police in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An Egyptian protester walks through a cloud of tear gas fired by Egyptian riot police.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – An "Ahly-Ultra" soccer fan holds a smoke flare above his head in Cairo.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester walks through a damaged school building.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – A protester removes the net from a basketball goal in a Cairo schoolyard.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Protesters and football fans clash with riot police near Egypt's interior ministry.

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Egypt unstable after days of protest – Protesters and fans of Al-Masry football club take part in a demonstration in front of the prison in Port Said.

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Photos: Egypt unstable after days of protest45 photos

Egypt unstable after days of protest – Egyptian protesters and fans of Al-Masry football club wave their club colors as they take part in a demonstration in front of the prison in the Egyptian Suez Canal city of Port Said on Friday, January 25, calling for the prisoners who are suspected of killing 74 fans of Al-Ahly club during a football match in February 2012 not to be transferred to Cairo to attend their trial. A judge sentenced 21 people to death for their roles in the riot last year.

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Two-time African player of the year Yaya Toure scored two first-half goals to help his team come from behind, and substitute Wilfried Bony sealed victory in time added on.

Parker had put his side ahead in the first half but Getaneh Kebede equalized before the break to join Salah and Algeria's Islam Slimani on a leading five goals in the qualifiers.

Ethiopia, which played at the Africa Cup of Nations in January for the first time in 30 years, has never gone to the World Cup.

However, it is facing a FIFA investigation after being accused of fielding an ineligible player in last Saturday's 2-1 win away to Botswana. If it is found guilty, South Africa and Botswana could have another chance to go through.

Football's world governing body has opened similar proceedings against Togo and Equatorial Guinea -- neither of which have reached the playoffs, but the outcome could affect the qualifiers from their respective groups.

Ghana reached the quarterfinals in South Africa three years ago, and the Black Stars are on course for a third successive appearance after beating Lesotho 2-0 in Maseru.

Christian Atsu and captain Asamoah Gyan.scored in either half to put Ghana one point ahead of Zambia in Group D ahead of their clash in the final round in September.

Zambia stuttered with a 1-1 draw at home to Sudan on Saturday.

Tunisia claimed a playoff place as winner of Group B after drawing 1-1 in Equatorial Guinea, with Sierra Leone's slim hopes having been ended by a 1-0 defeat against Cape Verde.